Back Row (l-r): Coach Brad Robinson, TreMone Akins, Jae Mitchell, Jim Flournoy, Dillon Burns, Dustin Bass, Dylan Bass, Hunter Burt, Coach Andy Briggs Front Row (l-r): Coach Brian Annett, Drew Herring, Jared Miller, Drew Annett, John Flournoy, Steven Walden, Jarrett Briggs
Ckeck out Attorney General Bondi’s latest newsletter by going to www.myfloridalegal.com
By Ginger Jarvis
Greene Publishing, Inc.
Due to the near-drought conditions prevailing in the area, the Madison City Commissioners authorized Fire Chief Alfred Martin to issue no-burn announcements at his discretiion. The board took the step at its regular meeting on June 14.
Martin said that he will consider information and warnings from the U. S. Forestry Service as guidelines for issuing bans when appropriate.
In other business, the board discussed restoration and protection of the Four Freedoms Monument. Cindy Vees, interim Chamber of Commerce Director, said that the Chamber has been asked to spearhead cleaning the monument. Mayor Jim Catron said that he will consult with Roy Smith, local marble worker, to assess the problems with the statue and offer suggestions for cleaning and repair. He added, “We would need to consider how to protect it after cleaning and restoration.”
The board also discussed changing its present policy regarding sewer-line work at the Madison Heights apartment complex. City Manager Harold Emrich said, “The city now has a policy of cleaning out the sewer lines and charging the owners $300. This should be something that they hire the private sector to do.”
Emrich cited a recent call in which city employees caused some damage to an apartment, which cost the city to repair. He said that city workers are not plumbers and should not be working on private property.
Commissioners Judy Townsend commented, “We have been providing this service as a courtesy.”
Commissioner James Stanley asked, “Are we doing it for everyone?” Emrich replied, “No.”
Commissioner Myra Valentine said, “We are taking jobs away from the private sector by doing this.”
The board agreed to consider the policy and contact the apartment owners to find a way that residents can get help in a timely manner.
Submitted by Pat Lightcap
It has given one a secure feeling to see the effort that has gone in to keeping all of the paint striping current on Highway 90 as the new surfacing has been added. This helps all of the drivers to stay in their lanes and know where the turning lanes are. This has not been easy with the multiple layers of new pavement being added. But it has kept us save and even added a little humor if we take the time to notice. The face painted at the intersection of Hwy 90 and Range indicates the painter had a little extra material and a good attitude to brighten our day.
Submitted by Pat Lightcap
Those back legs were really working in digging a pit for some purpose on the shore of Lake Francis in downtown Madison. Maybe it is time for bring up another family of the shelled creatures that populate the local waterway. If you find one in this posture please try to not bother the work in progress.
By Lynette Norris
Greene Publishing, Inc.
The Feb. 28 promotion ceremony for three Madison Police Officers got off to an unusual start before it even started Monday evening. Shortly before 6 p.m., as Police Chief Gary Calhoun was waiting outside with the cake and paper plates, the young man helping him unlock City Hall accidentally set off the security alarm. “Well, at least we know it works,” one of them joked.
A few minutes later, after everyone was seated, Calhoun asked Rev. Lee FerDon to open the ceremony with an invocation. Shortly afterward, as the three officers stood together at the front of the room, Calhoun swore them in. Thus, with right hands raised, Officers Eric Gilbert, Reggie Alexander and Jeff Rosenberg became Corporals of the Madison County Police Department. Immediately afterward, each man had his brand new badge pinned to his uniform by a family member. Gilbert had chosen his mother, Diane Gaylord for the honor, Alexander, his father, Joe Alexander, and Rosenberg, his wife, Beth Rosenberg.
All three men had gone through a thorough testing and interview process, Calhoun stated in a brief speech afterward. He went on to share with the men some thoughts from a recent sermon at his church, thoughts that he felt also were appropriate to the present occasion, including serving with grace and humility, remembering that every person they would deal with was the most important person in the world to someone else, and that the legacy they would leave with the department would depend on how they served.
Addressing the rest of the audience, he asked that friends and family be the support that each man would need, since even in a small, quiet town, the job of a police officer is not an easy one.
In concluding, he told those present that he had every confidence in the three young men, and that their legacy would be positive, leaving the department better for their having been there. “I sleep very well in the city at night,” he said, “knowing these guys are out there.”
By Lynette Norris
Greene Publishing, Inc.
Budget cuts and drug testing contracts made for some intense public input at the March 2 meeting of the Madison Board of County Commissioners. First up to speak was Marianne Green addressing the need of the entire country, particularly Madison County, to do more than just talk about budget cuts at a time when state and local funding sources that have helped Madison in the past are now drying up. Green herself, having received notice that her late husband’s Survivor Benefit Plan was cutting her monthly benefits by $30 a month, told commissioners that she had asked Congressman Ander Crenshaw to work on a “share-the-pain” plan to cut $30 from the monthly income of everyone else who has retired from government (Green’s late husband retired after 30 years in the U.S. Navy).
Budget cuts were also the initial reason the Commission had taken bids from several drug testing companies months earlier, to see if there was a less expensive, local alternative to the one currently being used, Airport Medical in Valdosta. In its January meeting, the Commission had awarded the contract to Tax Doctor and More, MD, owned by Meshalene Love-Taylor. However, at its February meeting, after reviewing the proposed contract and seeing no significant cost savings, the Commission voted 3-2 to rescind their earlier action and remain with Airport Medical.
“What in the world happened?” asked Rev. Albert Lee Barfield. “In this time of tightening belts…this is a slap in the face of every Madisonian tax-payer, when someone in the county can do it, work still goes outside the county.” Barfield went on to say that “we need a partnership between county and black-owned businesses…she (Taylor) is local, and I think we ought to take a lot of stock in our local businesses. It’s what made Madison.”
Barfield then questioned each commissioner about why he or she had voted for or against the contract at the last meeting. Those who had voted for it cited cost savings and “shopping locally,” while those who had opposed it said they had not seen any significant savings after reviewing the contract. Commissioner Justin Hamrick declined to answer.
Sheriff Ben Stewart took the floor to respond that some services needed to go out of the county, to companies that had no ties whatsoever with the community. “I’m not against her (Taylor), I’m against anyone local drug-testing.”
It would be a conflict of interest for anyone local, he added, because “we (in the Sheriff’s Office) have to deal with people in a negative fashion. We write them citations, we put them in jail, we hurt their feelings…if that place in Valdosta burned down tomorrow, I’d ask that we use a drug-testing service in Tallahassee or Perry or Lake City.”
The discussion ended with Barfield asking about the county’s minority advancement policy and Commissioner Renetta Parrish referring him to Oliver Bradley of the EEOC. Stewart assured everyone that he had an open-door policy and that anyone who had any concerns with the Sheriff’s Office to come by and he would be glad to discuss them.
District 5 (Taylor, Dixie, Madison, Lafayette)
Restrictions: Certified Burners Only
Dixie County
- none
Lafayette County
- none
Madison County
- 80 acres near CR 150/NE 299 Loop (State Hwy 140), Private Landowner
- 90 acres appx 3.5 miles west of Hwy 53/NW CR 223, Private Landowner
Taylor County
- 87 acres west of US 221/Lake Bird Church Rd, Private Landowner
- 280 acres near Beach Rd/Tennille Turnpike, Landowner: FWC
- 250 acres appx 3 miles south of US 19/Fish Creek Rd (Salem), Private Landowner
